A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between The Pacific Community (SPC) and World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Development at the University of Technology, Sydney has been signed. The MoU establishes a commitment to strengthen collaboration between the two organisations to address key regional health outcomes. A celebratory visit to Fiji was held in late February with Prof. Michele Rumsey (Director, WHOCC UTS), Prof. Di Brown (Professor of Nursing, Faculty of Health UTS), Ms Silinia Waqa (Regional Nurse, SPC), Dr. Silina Motofaga (Clinical Team Leader, Regional Nurse, SPC), and Margaret Leong (Infection Prevent and Control Advisor, SPC).
The SPC is an intergovernmental organisation founded by the Canberra Agreement Treaty in 1947. Owned and governed by 22 member countries and territories, SPC serves the developmental, scientific and technical needs of the Pacific region.
This partnership was established to provide a shared commitment to advancing the interests of nurses and midwives within the Pacific Islands Region. This emphasized importance of aligning collaborative activities with that of relevant international strategies, conventions, and frameworks. Specifically, the Strategic Directions for Nurses and Midwives 2021-2025 (SDNM) and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Innovative, effective, sustainable, and culturally relevant approaches to collaborative efforts were recognised as imperative to meeting the aims of the agreement.
The purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is to facilitate collaboration between SPC and WHO CC UTS particularly in the following areas of mutual interest, which provide a framework for the partnership:
- Facilitating networking, collaboration, and communication between Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officers
- Health Workforce Capacity building through supporting the development of key regional programs and initiatives
- Strengthening of Regulation, Education, and Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
- Supporting the delivery of the four policy focus areas outlined in the SDNM 2021-2025 – Jobs, Education, Leadership, and Service Delivery
- Supporting the development of subregional mechanisms for cooperation, knowledge exchange and resource sharing
The Pacific Leadership Programs (PLP) represents a future key activity of collaboration between the two organisations. The aim of past PLP’s has been to build leadership capacity within the Pacific by providing regional nursing and midwifery leaders with a skills-development program, and exposure to expertise on policy development, human resources for health (HRH) management, regulation, research, and data information systems. For more information on past PLP’s, click here.
In regards to the newly signed MoU, Director Prof. Rumsey said
It was a privilege to be with our regional colleagues in Fiji and very much look forward to working with them.